The nation of Eritrea has returned as a member of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the regional body that represents member countries in the Horn of Africa. Eritrean foreign minister Osman Saleh attended the IGAD heads of state assembly on Monday along with Yemane Gebreab, advisor to President Isaias…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
New research on climate change demonstrates that a large swath of the African continent would become dangerously hot with a projected 2.7°C global temperature rise, including more than 300 million people in Nigeria—the most vulnerable nation, after India, if efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C fail. Sudan, Niger and Burkina…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
On his official website, the story of Sir Mo Farah was the same on Monday night. The Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016. His European and World Best records. But there was more about one of the United Kingdom’s most respected athletes. “His achievements are a far cry from…
Siemens Gamesa is making important moves in Africa. The subsidiary of German engineering conglomerate Siemens installed the first turbine in Djibouti’s new windfarm project in early August and is on course to build the first renewable energy plant in the country. But while Djibouti continues to modernise, investment and development…
The long-time president of Djibouti, Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, has launched his re-election campaign in the run-up to national elections on 9 April. With the exception of Zakaria Ismael Jafar, an “anti-system” independent candidate, Guelleh is set to run for his fifth term unopposed. His challengers in the 2016 election have…
Smugglers forced dozens of migrants overboard in the Gulf of Aden on Wednesday, forcing some 80 people to their deaths by tossing them into the sea after leaving Djibouti. The International Organization for Migration said at least 200 passengers were aboard the boat when it departed, but the traffickers started…
Ismail Omar Guelleh, president of the small but strategically vital country of Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, announced in late December he would be running for a fifth term in presidential elections this April. Taking advantage of the media attention surrounding the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) summit, which…
Kenya will take a seat on the United Nations Security Council, after edging out Djibouti in second-round voting to determine how African nations will be represented in the 15-member body. Nairobi’s successful bid means it will sit alongside Tunisia and Niger, both elected to the two-year terms of nonpermanent members…
Tensions between Iran and the United States are edging toward what some analysts say could become a full-blown war to further destabilize the region. Libya, the focus of Sunday’s international efforts in Berlin, lies at the heart of a crisis that stretches across the Sahel and West Africa, as well…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi was in Djibouti on Thursday as he continues a five-nation tour of the continent, with a stop to meet President Ismail Omar Guelleh in what is the home of one of China’s most strategic investments in Africa. Guelleh said China confirmed a commitment to back…
Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi will head to Africa next week, with official visits planned in Egypt, Eritrea and Djibouti, as well as Burundi and Zimbabwe. The diplomatic schedule was announced Thursday by the Ministry of Affairs, which noted China’s tradition of beginning each new year on the African continent….
Japan and the European Union are among those supporting Djibouti after severe flooding hit the Horn of Africa nation, affecting some 250,000 people according to latest numbers from the EU. The United Nations office in Djibouti said the equivalent of two years of rainfall fell in a single day last…
Laureen is the editor of Africa Times
Officials in Saudi Arabia say that Houthi rebels in Yemen are responsible for a piracy incident in the Red Sea on Sunday, one that affected governments are working to resolve through diplomatic channels but say calls attention to the security situation on a strategic global shipping route. A spokesman of…
Opposition leaders in Djibouti are condemning the “scorched earth” policies of President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh and his regime, following a second day of street protests on the outskirts of the capital. Adan Mohamed Abdou, president of the USN alliance covering four opposition groups, said the protests in Arhiba followed the…
Djibouti is already feeling the impacts of climate crisis, and after a three-day tour of the Horn of Africa nation, the assistant secretary general for the United Nations humanitarian agency OCHA is calling for action. “Climate change is real, and I could see it here,” said UNOCHA’s Ursula Mueller. “I…